Motorcycling in Asheville, NC (November 9, 2013)

 No, this time I did not get to ride, went via car, but riding is never far from my mind, especially on these roads. Some of the best roads you can ever ride are found on the Blue Ridge Parkway. I have only ridden (and driven) on the North Carolina sections, but yes...I have been here and many times. This biker was one of many I saw taking the ride. He got to see some amazing views and got in some fantastic riding. I loved riding and am looking forward to doing some in the Virginia sections of this amazing road. I have more photos of the views and the Asheville area on my Flickr photo page. 

My girlfriend and I (she also rides, her ride is a Harley-Davidson, I though ride a Kawasaki) but I am very impressed with the motorcycles from BMW and they have a very nice dealership in Asheville not far from The Biltmore Mansion (which I also saw while visiting there, and there will be some photos of that on my Richmond and Me page). They just started selling KTM motorcycles and they are pretty cool. This is one of the best sportbikes out there, the BMW S1000RR and it is said to be one remarkable ride. Gets really good reviews by the motorcycle press but best review was from a guy who had one who described it with one word....wow!

 Red bike is a K1600GT, one of the big touring bikes from BMW. It has the fairly new (couple of years I think) in-line six engines. Fully water cooled, and also said to be a great motorcycle and one of the best touring bikes out there. Honda Gold Wing owners and Harley-Davidson Ultra Classic riders may debate that though. It is a sharp looking motorcycle and comes with all sorts of bells and whistles to make your ride from Point A to Point B an epic event. Told it is a remarkable bike, though as of yet don't know anyone who rides one.

Like this: the R1200R, a pretty sporty ride and a nice looking motorcycle for those of us who like their bikes with a bit less wind protection. This one has the famous Boxer engine, which was both air and oil cooled, but they are now coming out with factory versions that have air and water cooling (though it is not common to all Boxer engines as of yet).
BMW was a former aviation company (the famous emblem is a propeller) and have also been making motorcycles for a long, long time. Though a bit on the expensive side, they tend to be technological marvels. Those who own them...love them.